Srinagar: People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Saturday launched a signature campaign here to garner support for a complete ban on liquor in Jammu and Kashmir.
The signature campaign, aimed to garner support for a bill proposed by the party MLA Mir Mohammad Fayaz that seeks a complete ban on liquor in the union territory, was launched by party leader Iltija Mufti at the PDP head office here.
Mufti was scheduled to kick-start the party’s campaign at Sher-e-Kashmir Park, however, the police did not allow them to reach the venue, and the campaign was launched at the party office instead.
“Join @IltijaMufti ji tomorrow for a signature campaign to ban alcohol across Jammu & Kashmir. Everyone willing to join is hereby invited to be a part. PDP Office, Residency Road, Srinagar,” said Youth PDP in a post on X.
In her post on X, Iltija Mufti, said, ” Alcohol & drugs is wrecking lives & families in J&K. We must come together to put an end to it before it’s too late. Join me for a signature campaign tomorrow at the PDP office in Srinagar between 11 am – 2 pm for an alcohol ban to garner support for PDPs bill on banning alcohol consumption @MirMohdFayaz.”
The move comes after a bill proposed by PDP MLA from Kupwara, Fayaz Ahmad Mir, sought a complete ban on the advertisement, sale, purchase, consumption, and manufacture of alcoholic beverages in Jammu and Kashmir. PDP has expressed concern that the increasing alcohol consumption is becoming a serious threat to society, particularly its impact on the youth.
The bill by PDP MLA proposes stringent penalties, including imprisonment and hefty fines, for anyone found violating the ban. To score a brownie point, National Conference MLA Ahsan Pardesi has also submitted a private member’s bill seeking a ban on alcohol in Kashmir and other Muslim-majority regions of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) has also expressed strong support for bills aimed at banning alcohol in the Union Territory. Senior vice president of the JKPCC, G.N. Monga said that the Congress party would back the bills proposed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and National Conference (NC) MLAs. CPI(M) senior leader and MLA Kulgam M Y Tarigami, has said that the numbers are not a problem for the liquor bill to become law in the Assembly.
“We don’t have our own constitution and we can’t amend the constitution of India so the liquor ban bill requires only a simple majority to pass in the Assembly. It is not a constitutional amendment. The numbers don’t seem to be a problem for the bill to become law,” Tarigami said.
